Final date set for compensation claims

Morag Kuc

A final date for claims for compensation by those affected by past practices at Aberdeen Crematorium has been set.

Aberdeen City Council, in conjunction with Thompsons Solicitors, the firm representing many of the families involved, has confirmed it will accept claims up to February 1, 2017. The date has been set to enable the process to move to the next stage.

A spokesperson for Aberdeen City Council said: “We are committed to moving towards a settlement of claims for compensation and are working with all parties to ensure the individuals and families involved in the process are kept fully informed throughout the process.

“The Council has wholeheartedly apologised for the distress past practices at Aberdeen Crematorium have caused. The commitment to the compensation process is part of a full and comprehensive response from the organisation but Aberdeen City Council is clear that the impact on those affected must never be forgotten.”

The terms of compensation packages will remain confidential, as agreed by Aberdeen City Council and Thompsons.

Patrick McGuire, a partner with Thompsons, said: “The past few years have been immensely painful and stressful for the Aberdeen families. They have struggled to get their concerns heard. They felt as if their concerns were being ignored and brushed aside. The fact that we are where we are today is a testament to their courage, tenacity and dignity as well as the knowledge that in the end they knew they would be proved right.

“Over the past few years myself and the Aberdeen parents have had no alternative other than to follow a course of being highly critical of the stance adopted by Aberdeen City Council. The council has now done the right thing and for that they should be given credit.

“Myself and the families also believe that the report produced by Dame Elish Angiolini into these terrible events was critical in bringing us to this point and we wish to extend our thanks to her.”